


Where the Land Meets the Water

by seraphic_gate



Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: Beaches, Eventual Smut, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Mutual Pining, Summer Vacation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-16
Updated: 2020-03-11
Packaged: 2020-10-19 18:48:13
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 17,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20661992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seraphic_gate/pseuds/seraphic_gate
Summary: Ryuu invites Tenn to join him for a vacation in late summer, to a beach house in Okinawa.  The fun with his family is cut short by a tropical storm, but it’s mild enough that they decide to stay.  They enjoy each other’s company in the short time they have together away from the world.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This story was written as a one-shot, but at some point I crossed 10k words and I still had a lot to do. So, I decided to break it down into more manageable parts. I apologize if the end and intro to chapters doesn’t feel natural, since it wasn’t designed that way to begin with.
> 
> You can follow @lastdimension2 on twitter for updates to the story (it’s my nsfw account)

A studio had agreed to shoot Trigger’s new web special. They were scheduled to finish the six episodes in one session to save studio time.

That meant they had one break. Tenn spent it in the green room having a light snack of rice crackers. If he didn’t, his stomach would growl before the end of the shoot.

Ryuu knocked to make sure no one was changing before he stepped in, not that Tenn really cared. 

Ryuu looked at him and mumbled a sound while holding his hands clapped together as if he were leading into something.

Tenn turned and put his crackers down, waiting for him to work through it.

“Tenn, you know how we have that vacation time coming up?”

“Yes.” Tenn didn’t really need it, but Gaku and Ryuu both had families to see and interests outside of work that fulfilled them. He knew that, so he had agreed to taking a week off for their sakes, without making a fuss.

“I rented a beach house in Okinawa for the week,” he said. He sat on the green room’s couch beside Tenn. The cushions sank under his weight. 

“Sounds nice,” Tenn said. “Will your brothers stay with you?”

“It’s a school week, so they’ll only be there for a few days.”

“So, are you going to sit out there and enjoy the beach all by yourself?”

“I was wondering if you’d like to come,” he said. “I would ask Gaku, but he already said he wanted to work in the Yamamura shop that week.”

“So his vacation ends up being transferred to his mother, huh?” Tenn sighed. “If he enjoys it, then it’s all right. But he’d better not burn his hands, or pull a muscle.”

Ryuu laughed. “You worry about him when he’s not around, huh?”

“I wouldn’t say that.” He was certain if he pouted too much at that, it would give him away.

Ryuu chuckled once more at him. He was able to see through him clearly, and yet he didn’t tease him. “So Gaku is out. Would you want to come?”

Tenn shrugged. Ryuu’s brothers were cute, and it wasn’t like he had much else to do. “If I can relax in a beach in peace, I’ll go.”

“I promise a super relaxing vacation!”

***

Over the months that passed, Tenn noticed Ryuu getting more and more excited about their little Okinawa getaway.

He bought a new swimsuit. It had been so long since his last trip to the beach that his old ones weren’t quite big enough. His legs were too big around from all that running he did.

Tenn hid a smile behind his phone as he pretended not to pay attention to Ryuu trying it on in the full body mirror hanging in the hall. Sharing the apartment with Ryuu and Gaku meant that he was privy to little moments like these.

Tenn could enjoy it harmlessly enough, but that was all it could be. 

Another time, Ryuu presented him with some jelly sandals. Pink, with glitter suspended in the plastic. They’d probably been meant for a girl, not that he’d complain.

“These are easy to wash clean, and they’re cute, right?”

Tenn sighed. “Yes, they are. Thank you.”

Even Gaku noticed when a box containing an inflatable raft showed up. Thankfully, Ryuu decided to keep it deflated until it was needed. 

“Now I’m jealous,” Gaku said. “Ryuu is determined about your beach time, huh?”

Tenn shrugged. “You can always join us.”

“My mom already booked a spa package,” he groaned. “Whatever. I’d just fry alive out there anyway.”

Ryuu overheard them and had to interject. “Wear plenty of sunblock! Even I have to do it.”

Tenn thought about a sun-kissed Ryuu with tan lines over his hips and hid the smirk on his lips again.

***

The day finally came, and Tenn found himself placing his bag of clothes and personal items into the back seat of the taxi, while Ryuu tried to fit his luggages full of beach paraphernalia in the trunk.

Yet, in spite of this excitement, Ryuu’s expression was downtrodden.

“Tenn, maybe you should reconsider.”

Tenn was honestly shocked at that. “Why? After you bought me jelly sandals and everything.”

He had meant it as a joke to lighten the mood, but Ryuu took it seriously. “I’m so sorry, but there’s a storm coming. I’m going the first day or two for my brothers, but after that, I might come back.”

Tenn shrugged. “That’s okay.”

“But, I promised you we’d have a relaxing time after my brothers went home.”

“This vacation is for you, right? I’m just tagging along. I don’t mind if you want to come back early.”

“Really?” Ryuu looked so relieved, like he might cry. He pulled Tenn up into a sudden hug. “Thank you, Tenn!”

Tenn allowed it, but pushed his way out of Ryuu’s arms as soon as he could. “I’m still not sure why you’re so excited about me coming along, but there’s no need to thank me for it.”

“That’s...” Ryuu began to look around sheepishly. Tenn found it suspicious, but the taxi driver was getting impatient. He let it go.

***

It was a short flight. 

By the time they reached the beach house, the sun was setting. The kids had school that day, so they’d be arriving after they had dinner to spend the night. The fun would start in full on Saturday morning.

The beach house was nice. It was built up on stilts to withstand a high tide. Standing on the deck up that high, Tenn could see the shore. The sun was about to set, and the waves gently lapped the beach.

He enjoyed that moment, just him with Ryuu, for as long as it would last.

The place was functionally private, with no other houses or lots to park in for quite a distance. This made Tenn wonder how much Ryuu had dropped for it. It wasn’t prime beach real estate, but a private house at the seaside like this could run around a million yen for a week, easily. Maybe his stepfather helped. Maybe the Takanashi family owned this spot. He hadn’t asked.

The inside was nice, too. It had only one bed, but a wide open tatami mat floor, and lots of bedding to go around. 

The decor was of seashells, oars, and anchors, everything Ryuu liked. 

That evening, the kids were dropped off by their father. Ryuu gave them each a big bear hug in turn, remarking how they had grown and ruffling their hair.

It wasn’t too dissimilar to how he often embraced Gaku and Tenn. To think that Ryuu could love them both as much as he loved his brothers filled him with a sense of belonging he could only find with Trigger. But sometimes when he looked at Ryuu, he wanted something more than this brotherly affection.

“Tenn-ni!” The littlest Tsunashi brother squealed in delight as he slipped free of Ryuu’s grasp and ran across the room to hug Tenn. “I call bed with Tenn-ni!!”

“Soutaru,” Ryuu said, scolding, “you know that you can’t take the bed for yourself, and you definitely can’t decide for Tenn if he’d like to sleep with you.”

The small boy looked up with the all-too-familiar puppy dog eyes. “Tenn-ni, can I sleep with you?”

“Sure. But let’s agree with everyone who should get the bed.”

In the end, the two older boys would rather not share. They were getting too old to want to cuddle together, or with their big brother, and proudly opted for the floor. So Soutaru got his wish, and Tenn was chosen to share the bed with him.

“It’s your vacation,” he said to Ryuu, as he unrolled a mat on the floor. “Is this all right?”

“I’m used to it,” he laughed. “Please take the bed, I just hope Soutaru isn’t too much for you.”

“I don’t mind,” Tenn said. “I kind of miss it.”

***

Tenn woke to the sound of a small breath beside him. During the night, Soutaru had curled up to him and was now nestled under his chin.

It brought back memories of Riku, of letting him share the bed, and how relieved he was just to hear him breathing.

His vision focused and he found Ryuu watching them, sitting on the floor with his head resting on the edge of the bed. He had an adoring look in his eyes.

“Watching him sleep?” Tenn whispered. “He’s cute, isn’t he?”

Ryuu’s smile was gentle and dazzling in the morning light. “Yeah.”

***

Ryuu threw open the curtains in spite of the two older boys’ groans, and lifted the window pane to let the fresh air in. The smell of the sea was invigorating.

He heard a chuckle and looked down to find Tenn at his side. Tenn had a distant look on his face. “The ocean really is your one true love.”

“I wouldn’t say that...”

But Tenn didn’t hear him over the squeal of Soutaru waking up to find that Tenn wasn’t there. “Tenn-ni!” He ran across the room and clamped his little arms around Tenn’s leg.

“Ew, gross,” said Kounosuke, the middle child. “What a baby.”

“Don’t tease him,” said the older one, Kotaro, so mature now. Ryuu was proud of him. 

“I’ll make breakfast!” Ryuu went to the kitchen. When he dropped off the boys, his father had gifted them some groceries, too. “How about omurice?”

Tenn smiled. “You know it’s my favorite.”

Soutaru piped up fiercely at that. “Omurice is my favorite too!”

Kounoske mocked him. “No it’s not, you like pancakes.”

“No way, I like omurice!”

“I’ll make both,” Ryuu said with a laugh. “Tenn, will you help me?”

“Sure.”

“I want to help!”

Tenn knelt down. “Okay, you can whip the eggs for me.”

Soutaru beamed as Tenn handed him the whisk to hold.

***

It didn’t take long for the kids to eat and get ready for the beach. Even though they lived so close to it, they were always eager.

Ryuu knew how it felt. Being on the beach got him so excited. The feeling of sand squelching under his feet was like a welcome home.

“Ryuu-ni! Watch how I can swim!”

“Not yet, Sou-chan,” Ryuu laughed. “Everyone put your sunscreen on.”

“Ryuu,” Tenn asked. 

Ryuu turned to find him with his top unzipped and pulled down over his shoulders. Not that he had never seen Tenn topless before, but at least on shoots he had a little time to prepare for it. It always struck him how prominent the shape of his collarbone was. 

Tenn squinted at him. “Are you okay?”

Ryuu shook out of his temporary daze. “Y-Yeah! What do you need?”

“Can you get my back? It would be bad if I got a sun burn.”

“Of course!”

In his eagerness to be helpful, Ryuu agreed before realizing what a task this would be for him. Tenn turned his back, exposing the hills and valleys of his body. 

Ryuu squeezed a bit of the cream onto his fingers and took a deep breath as he dragged them over Tenn’s shoulder and down.

Soft. Even though he was so skinny that at times Ryuu worried about his diet, he was as soft to the touch as a ripe peach. 

He knew Tenn would be annoyed with him, and rightly so, if he couldn’t do a decent job at this. He swallowed hard and resolved to do it well, even if he was screaming on the inside _so soft!!_

He felt Tenn’s chest expand and then release as he let out a happy little sigh.

“Ah...” Ryuu couldn’t stop the sound from escaping as his brain froze over, unable to process this.

Tenn turned. “Are you done?”

“Yeah, yeah!”

“Thank you. Do you need me to do you?”

Ryuu shook his head frantically. “No thanks, I’ve got it covered!”

Tenn gave him a quizzical look but shrugged it off.

***

Tenn watched Ryuu as he hit the water. The way he bounded against the waves made Tenn think of a happy puppy who finally gets to play.

He preferred restraint when it came to the ocean. He’d wade in on an inflated raft, but he wasn’t a great swimmer. He preferred the shallow water.

That was fine, since Soutaru was happy there, too. Being one of Ryuu’s fisherman clan, he had been taught to swim at a young age, and was better at it now than Tenn was, himself. But the big waves were scary.

The other two boys had surf boards of their own, and took to the waves. 

Tenn was standing in the waist-deep water when Ryuu swam in and burst out from under the next wave, grasping his hands out like a monster. Soutaru laughed. 

“What a beast,” Tenn said.

“Come on, Tenn.”

“Come on, what?” 

He shouted as Ryuu picked him up effortlessly and lifted him onto the big inflatable donut raft. Because he was so slender, his butt slipped through the hole and he was trapped there.

“Come with us!” Ryuu laughed and scooped Soutaru up too, placing him into Tenn’s lap. He squealed happily.

Tenn sighed, unable to protest to such excitement as he was dragged out into the bigger waves.

***

He humored them as much as he could, but it wasn’t long before he retreated to the shade of an umbrella on the shore.

Watching was fine. Ryuu was at his most attractive under the sun, bodily tossing his brothers around in the ocean spray.

And they were so happy to be with him. Even the older two, once their pretensions had dropped, laughed and played along. Tenn wondered how long they could stay here, with just each other, without being bored or needing anything more. 

He felt a throb in his chest, as he tried to remember if he and Riku had ever gone to the beach when they were kids.

Unfortunately, before the sun had even set, storm clouds rolled in.

At first the rain didn’t phase them. Tenn supposed it wouldn’t. They were used to this kind of weather. 

But soon the temperature fell and the waves began to get choppy.

“Let’s go inside,” Ryuu said, earning groans from all three boys.

***

Ryuu watched the storm from the kitchen window as he worked on dinner. It had come in even sooner than predicted.

Soutaru, exhausted from the day’s activity, napped with his head resting on Tenn’s thigh. Tenn was naturally good with children. This was a fact he’d learned about him long ago. It never failed to make him smile.

Tenn played card games with the boys, using candy for bets. Ryuu wondered where he’d learned that. Maybe in his adventurous youth overseas.

“Come and eat,” he said, and poured the contents of his pan onto a family style plate. 

Kotaro held Tenn lay Soutaru aside. “You can leave Sou-chan there, he’ll wake up and eat when he’s ready.”

Ryuu hated to admit if, but his next oldest brother was more familiar with what Soutaru’s behavior than he was. He hadn’t lived with the family since the youngest boy was a toddler. 

Tenn laid Soutaru carefully on the mat. He barely stirred.

Tenn laughed a bit as he approached the table and examined the dish. “Do you all love bitter melon as much as Ryuu?” 

The two boys looked at him as if he’d said something strange. Ryuu chuckled.

***

The rain may have cut their beach day short, but Tenn found himself blissfully swept away by the sound of the waves and the rain in cacophony.

It would almost be romantic if he had someone else in his bed. Not that he minded the company of Ryuu’s youngest sibling. Soutaru clung tighter to him every time the thunder boomed. Tenn rubbed his back until he fell asleep again.

That morning, the rain came and went in bursts, but the wind was turbulent and the skies were still dark. 

The boys’ father came to get them before noon. 

“I don’t want to leave!” Soutaru cried. He hugged Tenn around the waist as hard as he could.

Tenn could relate. He had only come on this trip on a whim, and yet he wasn’t ready to head home either.

He knelt and pat the boy’s head. “I’ll come with Ryuu to visit you soon, okay?”

He sniffled, but did as he was asked. 

Tenn waved as their car pulled away. Ryuu stood beside him. The eldest of the Tsunashi brothers looked like he might cry, too. Tenn lifted his hand and rubbed his back.

Ryuu forced a smile for him. As they stood there in the quiet that swept over the beach in the sudden absence of three children, Tenn felt a drop of rain hit his head. Then another.

Ryuu sighed. “Should we go before the rain comes down hard again?” 

“It’s just rain.”

“If we stand out here, we’ll both get soaked.”

Tenn looked around himself. They were here, at the beautiful shore of Okinawa that Ryuu loved, in the driveway of a luxurious beach house that would remain empty if they left.

“It is just rain,” he said, more confidently this time. “It’s not like it’s dangerous to be here, is it?”

Ryuu shook his head. “It’s a mild storm, but it could last for a few days.” 

“But it’s not like the house will wash away, or blow down.”

“No, it’s not even a cyclone.”

“Then what’s to keep us from staying?”

“I—“ Ryuu began to trip over his  
words. “We’ll, uh... we’d be stuck in this little house together with nothing to do. Won’t you get bored? What if the power goes out?”

Tenn shrugged. If they went home, they’d just end up waiting for a plane to become available all night. Even if they made it back without incident, they’d be holed up in their apartment anyway. “You booked this place because you’ve been missing the ocean so much. Seems a waste to leave it, even if it’s raining.”

“Is that what you think I...”

“Hm?”

The rain was falling harder now. The dots that speckled the sand all around them had saturated it through. It became hard to hear Ryuu over the sound of it.

“You look so happy when you’re near the ocean,” Tenn said, raising his voice. “So what if it’s raining? We won’t get another vacation like this until next year.”

Ryuu leaned down to speak closer to his ear, so that Tenn could hear him. “I didn’t come for the ocean.”

“You’re not here for the ocean?” He laughed. “Come on, what are you talking about?”

“I’m sorry, Tenn. I didn’t know how to tell you. It was for you.”

Tenn blinked and wiped the rain out of his eyes. “Me?”

Ryuu shook his head, backing away. “Well... maybe it was just for myself.”

Tenn clenched his fists. It left a dull pain in his gut to think that after all this time and everything they had been through, that Ryuu couldn’t be direct with him.

He huffed a breath that shook droplets of rain from the end of his nose. “Which is it?”

“I...” Ryuu trailed off, his eyes darting away. “I wanted to be here with you.”

The words left him mindless. Not a thought in his head, just the roar of the ocean and the pitter-patter of rain on sand. 

The moment held until Ryuu straightened up and began to fidget with his wet hair. “It’s really coming down, uh, I’ll call the taxi—“

Tenn grabbed his hand and used his weight as an anchor to stop Ryuu from running off. 

***

He’d really done that. He said that.

His heart was racing. He didn’t even know what excuse blathered out of his mouth, just that he couldn’t take Tenn’s glare anymore. Something about a taxi.

But Tenn held fast. Ryuu looked down to where their arms linked and followed Tenn’s to his face. He was still looking at him, but his eyes were soft now, searching him. He couldn’t look away, even with rain dripping from his brow.

“Ryuu,” Tenn said. “Take me to the beach.”

Ryuu wasn’t sure if he’d heard him right. “We are at the beach... right?”

Tenn pulled his arm and began to lead him down the driveway to the shore.

Ryuu let himself follow, still uncertain. He wondered if Tenn could feel his hand trembling. Did he understand what he’d said? Did he know what it meant?

Soon the choppy grey ocean was lapping at their legs.

Tenn broke the hold on his hand and took a few steps ahead. He began to spin in a circle with his arms out, catching all the rain he could with a big smile on his face.

“Tenn, what are you doing?”

“I’m being here with you.” He shrugged, as if it was obvious. 

“Ah.” Ryuu blushed at that. “You seem like you’re having fun.”

Tenn smiled and pushed a piece of wet hair out of his face. “How many of our fans would die to be on a private beach with you, Ryuunosuke?”

When Tenn used his name like that, it sent a shiver down his spine. He almost couldn’t respond. “I—well, I think they’d die more to be with Trigger’s perfect angel.”

Tenn shook his head in dismay and began to walk. “I suppose.” 

Ryuu joined him. The rain concerned him, but they could spare a moment before it got bad. 

The way their hands dangled close as they walked made him want to reach for Tenn’s, but he wasn’t sure if he should.

Tenn turned and started walked backward down the coast while facing him. He hummed. “Shine on the sea~”

“The sea isn’t shining much today,” Ryuu sighed.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be all the shine you need.” 

His clever wink left Ryuu speechless and dreaming, so much that he didn’t notice a piece of driftwood in their path. Tenn stumbled and fell on his butt.

“Careful,” Ryuu said, kneeling to help him up.

“Ha, not so perfect, am I?” 

With the rain soaking his hair, and the mildly embarrassed look on his face, he was more than that.

Thunder rumbled in the distance. They’d wandered away from the house. Palm trees swayed in the wind with increasing frenzy. There wasn’t another soul out here except for the two of them. 

The wind picked up. Ryuu reached out instinctively to protect Tenn from the gust. Tenn, imperfect as he was in that moment, lost his balance under the weight of him.

Ryuu panicked at the sound of Tenn hitting the ground beneath him in splash of wet sand. He braced himself against the fall on his hands and knees so as not to crush him.

Tenn laid beneath him. He laughed even as a wave washed the shore and hit him in the face. Covered in sand, with sea foam in his hair. Beautiful.

He froze there as the sea sighed and another wave rolled up to them.

Ryuu’s instinct was to pull away, but the slender arms hooked behind his neck held him in place.

Tenn pulled him down into the sand with all of his weight as the next wave hit. Ryuu held his breath and felt Tenn’s mouth against his, warm and sweet.

He had to wonder if he’d been struck by lightning.

The wave receded and Tenn broke the kiss with a gasp. He looked up at him, waiting.

Ryuu’s body moved before his brain could catch up. He wanted more of Tenn’s kiss. He had always wanted that.

Just as their lips almost met again, a wave crashed into them and pushed them apart.

Tenn laughed as he sat up, shaking seaweed off his arms. “The ocean is jealous,” he said. “She wants you to herself.”

The ability to process thought caught up with him, and he felt flushed hot all over. _I kissed Tenn,_ he thought. He touched his fingers to his lips, as if he could confirm all this was real.

Tenn noticed and narrowed his eyes at him. Before he could tease him, the sea protested again. His laugh broke into more of a squeal as he held onto Ryuu as tightly as he could. The wave splashed over them.

“Let’s go back,” Ryuu said. “It’s getting rough out here.”

He offered his hand to Tenn. They walked all the way back with their fingers curled together.


	2. Chapter 2

They climbed the stairs to the deck and entered through the back door of the beach house. They stood there in the kitchen, both sopping wet and covered in sand as the rain beat against the window panes. Tenn was sure he still had some kind of gunk from the ocean in his hair.

Ryuu kept on looking at him adoringly.

Tenn had seen that look in his eyes before and convinced himself it was nothing more than the affection of a dear friend. He thought his lustful feelings were only his, and had buried them deep.

But he saw Ryuu’s gaze trail down to his chest, where his shirt was stuck to him with rain and mud, his color of his skin showing through. That was a look of desire. 

He lifted his head in invitation, but Ryuu didn’t lean down to kiss him. Tenn couldn’t close the gap. Sometimes it was troublesome having such tall partners in Trigger.

“You can kiss me,” he said, pulling on the lapel of Ryuu’s open beach shirt. “It’s okay.”

But still, no. For a moment he was frozen in the fear that maybe Ryuu didn’t want to kiss him, that he’d misinterpreted everything. That his unchecked desire had leaked all over an unwilling participant. 

Ryuu’s hand cupped against his cheek, warm and gentle. He sighed. When Ryuu kissed him, it was little more than a touch of his lips. 

Tenn let Ryuu explore him at his pace. The hand at his cheek stroked into his hair and over his scalp, petting him as if he were something precious. He’d never been handled so carefully in his life.

Every whisper of a touch made him yearn more for a rough one. A frustrated whimper belied his veneer of patience.

Ryuu pulled away. “Are you okay? Did I hurt you?”

He had to laugh. “Of course not. You barely touched me.”

He didn’t mean to sound accusatory, but Ryuu’s face fell. “Am I doing this wrong?”

Tenn shook his head. “Not at all.” He leaned in to press his forehead against Ryuu’s. He dug his hands into Ryuu’s hair, desperate for any tactile stimulation he could get. “But, if you’d allow me...”

Ryuu released a tense breath that blew hot onto Tenn’s face. “Anything,” he said in a whisper. “Just to be here with you, Tenn, I...”

Tenn kissed him. Not with all of the fervor he felt, he didn’t want to scare him. Just enough to make this chaste touch something more than that. He lifted up onto the balls of his feet and pressed his mouth against Ryuu’s.

Ryuu felt him staggering on his toes and moved his hands to Tenn’s waist to hold him steady.

Tenn sighed against his mouth. He wanted more of Ryuu’s hands on him. He wanted the clothes torn off of him and to be thrown up against a wall. 

“Maybe we should get cleaned up,” Ryuu said, pulling away. He plucked a bit of seaweed that was still in Tenn’s hair. “You can go first.”

Tenn swallowed and tried to clear his head. He knew this was too much, but he found himself saying it anyway. “Come with me.”

Ryuu looked back at him, stunned as he expected him to be. “Into the shower?”

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have phrased it as a demand.” He took Ryuu’s hand and held it as he looked up at him. “Will you please join me? That’s what I meant.”

Ryuu opened his mouth and only a strangled mumble came out. Tenn shook his head. He asked for too much. Maybe if he could rephrase it.

“I liked when you put the sunscreen on my back,” he said, looking at their linked hands. “I felt close to you in that moment.”

Ryuu let go of a tense laugh. “I thought it was just me.”

Tenn smiled up at him. “That’s all I want. It doesn’t have to be more than that.”

Ryuu took both of his hands and laced their fingers together. He leaned forward again to press a kiss to Tenn’s forehead. “Then I will. But go easy on me. You’re too beautiful.”

***

Tenn’s clever smile was too much for him to bear. His head was swimming, pulse racing, hot all over. He wondered if Tenn knew how much power he had. 

They walked to the bathroom. It had both a standing shower and a claw foot tub.

In this room, the sound of the rain was diffused by the tile, hollow and earthy. It was still midday, but the clouds outside made the light dim. 

It was still surreal to think that Tenn wanted him like this, although the evidence was there in the way he looked back over his shoulder as he peeled his soaking wet t-shirt off.

Ryuu couldn’t take his eyes away. 

“You should probably undress first,” Tenn said with a chuckle as he pulled off his pants. “I’ll turn the other way if it helps.”

It might, Ryuu thought. But no. He wanted to go through with this, and he wasn’t going to let nerves ruin it for him. If he could sing on a stage in front of thousands of people, he could survive one shower with Tenn.

Tenn averted his eyes all the same. It made it easier.

Once their clothes were off, Ryuu’s mind had checked out, and his body was on auto-pilot. As he stepped into the shower behind Tenn, there wasn’t a single coherent in his head except for the overwhelming _Tenn is too beautiful_. Every part of him. 

Tenn pulled the shower curtain closed. He turned on the water and set it to the high end of the temperature gauge. “Let me know if it’s too hot,” he said.

Ryuu had to laugh. “I’m already burning up.”

“Oh?” The water hit Tenn’s body, rinsing off the sand and salt. “Just relax.”

Tenn ran his hands through his hair under the shower to wet it. His arms held up over his head, Ryuu could see every little ripple of his slender body, the angles of his shoulder blades and ribs. He looked down and caught a glimpse of Tenn’s supple backside before looking up at the ceiling again.

“Turn around,” Tenn said. “I’ll wash your back for you.”

He took this as a reprieve from the overwhelming sight of Tenn, and turned to look at the back of the shower instead.

Tenn lathered a sponge and ran it over his shoulders. 

He sighed. “That feels good.”

“Good,” Tenn said. “Just relax. Listen, you can hear the ocean from here.”

Ryuu closed his eyes and leaned his head against the cool tile in front of him. He could hear waves rolling in and out just as Tenn said, over the sound of the shower and the rain outside.

Tenn scrubbed his back with just the right amount of pressure. Not gentle, but not harsh. Ryuu sighed as his shoulders relaxed and the tension drained from his muscles.

Tenn rinsed him. “Would you do mine?” He asked, and turned.

Ryuu took the sponge. Maybe it was the sound of the ocean. His heart had calmed. He could look at Tenn’s body without feeling it would burst out of his chest.

He brushed the long parts of Tenn’s hair aside and began to soap his back. The back of his neck was so pale and lovely.

Just as he had with the sunscreen, he marveled at how soft Tenn’s skin was. He wanted to wash him as thoroughly as Tenn had done for him, but he was hesitant to apply too much pressure.

Tenn made a contented sound. Ryuu was thankful to himself for overcoming his fears. Just that moment made it worth it.

He rinsed Tenn’s back and smoothed it with his hand to make certain every drop of soap was gone. It felt so nice to have Tenn’s skin under his palms. He let them glide over Tenn’s hips.

He felt Tenn take his hands and guide them around his waist. Tenn leaned back until he was flush against Ryuu’s stomach. “Is this okay?” 

“Yes.” Ryuu bowed his head and kissed the back of Tenn’s neck.

Tenn shivered in his arms despite the hot water that washed over them. 

***

Up until this point, Tenn had done his best to control himself. Ryuu’s soft kiss against the nape of his neck was more than he could take. 

He curled up with his arms against the back of the shower, trying not to make embarrassing mewling sounds as Ryuu continued to pepper his shoulders with kisses.

“You like that,” Ryuu said. His voice tickled against Tenn’s skin.

“Yes.” He whimpered. “Please, more.”

“Okay.” Ryuu turned him around so that he stood with his back against the wall, careful that he wouldn’t slip. 

Facing each other, Ryuu could see how hard he was. He didn’t call attention to it, but leaned in to kiss his cheek, his ear, then his shoulder. Every peck increased his need.

“You’re so beautiful,” Ryuu said in a whisper. “I think I’m dreaming.”

“It wouldn’t be the first time I dreamed about this,” Tenn said, spurred on by his mounting desire. “Ha, I felt so dirty thinking I was the only one.”

Ryuu kissed his mouth as if to quiet such a notion, and this time it was everything he wanted. He moaned into Ryuu’s open mouth against his, tasting him.

He felt Ryuu’s body press against him, hot to the touch under the shower stream. Without thinking, he bucked his hips up against him. Ryuu slipped an arm around him to stop him from falling.

He broke the kiss with a gasp for air. “Ryuu, ah...”

“It’s okay,” he whispered against his ear, petting his wet hair. “I’ve got you.”

He hated the sound of his own voice as he whined in desperation. “Touch me, please.”

Ryuu did more than that.

He dropped to his knees and took the length of Tenn’s cock into his mouth all at once, holding him by the hips.

Tenn covered his mouth to dampen his cry, racked by the thought of Ryuu, who’d been too shy to kiss him a moment ago, with his cock stuffed into his mouth. The sensation was too overwhelming to stop himself.

He dug his hands into Ryuu’s hair and pulled tight, but Ryuu didn’t let up. 

_“Ryuu,” _ he gasped, his voice lost in boom of thunder that rattled the house. Or maybe it was just him that was shaking. It was too good to think at all. Ryuu’s nasal breath against his stomach and his wet mouth sucking him off. 

He came so fast he couldn’t even clear his thoughts long enough to give Ryuu a proper warning. 

Ryuu coughed as it filled his mouth, but held Tenn steady. If not for that, Tenn was certain he’d have fallen. 

As quickly as that feeling had swept him up, it receded. His arms dropped boneless to his sides.

Ryuu stood. He wiped his mouth and scooped Tenn up into his arms. “Did I do it right?”

Tenn was still gasping for breath, and thankful for Ryuu’s large body to lean into. “You didn’t have to do _that._”

Ryuu smiled, accomplished. Eager to please. He looked so happy to have succeeded. “I wanted to make you feel good, like in your best dreams.”

“Congratulations, you exceeded them.”

Ryuu stood and nuzzled his face with his nose. “Your voice is so cute when you say you want me,” he said, his tone soft and bashful. “If it makes you happy, I’ll do it as many times as you want.”

Tenn regained the ability to move his legs, and pushed himself off the wall of the shower. “I’m not sure you understand what you do to me when you say things like that.”

“Hm?” Ryuu kissed his cheek. “I hope it’s something good.”

Tenn sighed and laid his head against Ryuu’s chest. Thunder cracked and rolled again. Ryuu wrapped his arms tight around him and kissed the top of his head.

***

What Ryuu had always dreamed about was exactly this. Having Tenn to himself, relaxed in his arms, free of anyone else’s demanding gaze. He rocked him gently and smoothed his hands down his back as he held him.

“I think we’re clean enough,” he said, kissing him once more on his head. “Come on, let’s get dry. Too much hot water is bad for the skin.”

Tenn groaned and buried his face into him. “But I’m warm here.”

He laughed. “You can dry off and hop into the blankets.”

“Okay.”

He turned the water off and stepped onto the bathroom mat. There were big, fluffy towels hanging nearby. He took one and enveloped Tenn’s slender body with it. Tenn smiled at him. He felt butterflies in his stomach every time.

It had gotten darker in the short time since they entered the bathroom. Ryuu went to flip the light switch, only to find that it didn’t work.

“Did the power go out?”

“Yeah, seems like it.”

Tenn rubbed his hair with the towel, leaving his naked body on display. Smooth shapes in the dim light.

He slipped into one of the bath robes that hung by the door. “I’ll look for some candles,” he said. Then smirked. “Don’t get dressed or anything.”

Ryuu gulped. His heart was beating fast again. 

He dried himself and looked through the house to find Tenn. He found him in the hall pantry. He had managed to find a box of tea light candles.

“There’s a lighter in the kitchen,” Ryuu said. “The stovetop is gas, so I can cook for you. Ah, but I better cook the meat before it goes bad!”

As he turned toward the kitchen, Tenn grabbed his wrist and held him back. “I’m not done with you.”

Ryuu felt the heat on the back of his neck as he turned and found tenn smiling at him that clever way while pulling on his hand.

“Right.” Ryuu walked with Tenn to the bedroom. “What can I do for you now?”

Tenn lit a candle and set it on the dresser. “Lay down,” he said. “Get the bed nice and warm for me.”

Ryuu knew it shouldn’t feel so scandalous to lay in the spot where Tenn had slept, especially not after he’d been the one to escalate the situation in the shower. He wasn’t even sure why he’d done it, except that it felt good at the time. He knew it would make Tenn feel good.

The spot in the bed smelled like Tenn. 

“There,” Tenn said, having lit a sufficient number of candles to see by. “Now sit up.”

Ryuu did what he said. “Yes, Tenn.”

“You’re so eager to please,” he said with a soft laugh. “Just relax. It’s my turn to take care of you.”

Tenn retrieved a travel bottle of moisturizer from his bag. Ryuu felt the bed dip as he returned to it and crawled close to him on his knees.

He felt Tenn’s small, precise hands smooth the lotion over his skin. Again, his touch was firm enough without being too hard.

“Have you been thinking about me for a long time?” Tenn asked it gently.

Ryuu tried to think back. “It didn’t start this way,” he said. “But I cant remember how long it’s been.” Especially with Tenn pressing his fingers in between the tight muscles of his back, it was difficult to work through. 

Tenn leaned closer to him to whisper into his ear from behind. “I’ve been thinking about it since we met.” He punctuated this with a kiss to Ryuu’s neck through the buzzed hair of his undercut. Now he understood why Tenn shivered when he did it. It felt electric.

“That long?”

Tenn laughed. “Ryuu, I was a teenager when you met me. I couldn’t stop myself from thinking about it. But I thought it was just my guilty pleasure. I never imagined...”

Ryuu waited for him to finished, but he didn’t. “What is it?”

He felt Tenn lean against him. “I mean, I knew that you loved me, you and Gaku. But I never thought you could see me that way, not like...”

Tenn’s words were always carefully planned and elegant. To hear him trip on them like this was worrying.

“Not the way you are to me.”

Ryuu turned. He cupped tenn’s face in his hand. Tenn leaned into it. He was blushing, and it wasn’t just from the hot shower. “When I first saw you, I thought you looked like an angel.”

Tenn nearly spat at that. “I’m not.”

“I know.” Ryuu chuckled. “I got to know your little devil side soon enough.”

That earned him a wrinkled nose. Ryuu combed Tenn’s hair back with his fingers and looked deep into those piercing eyes of his. 

“I don’t know what you’ve been seeing in me all this time, but I’m glad you’re here with me now.”

Tenn kissed him and pushed him back into the bed. Although he was small compared to Ryuu (most people were), his weight was more than enough to pin him against the blankets. 

“If you don’t know,” he said, moving his mouth to Ryuu’s neck. “I’ll have to show you.”

Tenn straddled over him and smoothed his hands over his chest while he continued to kiss his ears. 

Ryuu felt a happy sound rise up out of his chest like a cat’s purr. He raised his arms to touch Tenn, not in any way that would restrict him from doing whatever he wanted to do to him. Just to have his fingers in his hair and feel the warmth of his skin.

Tenn had a deliberate way of touching him, bold and assured of himself. He traced the shape of Ryuu’s pectoral muscles like he was carving them out of clay. Every touch confirmed what Ryuu had a hard time understanding—that Tenn found him attractive. Ryuu, his real self, not a picture in a magazine. 

Tenn pulled the robe that was barely covering Ryuu’s body open. Ryuu winced at the thought of Tenn seeing him completely naked and so close. The shower had been dim, and Tenn had the mercy to avert his eyes for the most part. 

But not anymore. In the light of the candles he had lit, he was taking his time examining every part of Ryuu’s body. 

Ryuu had seen that look before. Eyes blown, lips red. Usually from a co-star or a photographer, but occasionally even just random people on the street. Looking at him that way.

But when Tenn had that look, it excited him. Because Tenn knew him. Tenn loved him. 

“May I return the favor you did for me,” Tenn said, pushing his bangs behind his ear as he lowered himself to Ryuu’s waist.

How kind of him to ask. Ryuu realized that he hadn’t really asked. He’d wanted to please Tenn so badly.

“Yes.” He swallowed hard and threw an arm over his face.

***

Ryuu’s body laid beneath him like a perfectly presented dish waiting to be torn into and made a mess of.

He knew Ryuu hated the eroero beast thing, and he did his best not to think of it, but Ryuu’s body was immaculate. It took some willpower not to grab at handfuls of him.

Tenn had seen peeks of him in the dressing room, but always turned his head out of respect. He only knew the general geography. 

He traced a finger over the tan lines on his hips. 

His cock was a beautiful thing. Large as to be expected, but not grotesquely so. A golden color, darker than the rest of him by just a shade. Plump and smooth, with just a sparse patch of well trimmed hair at the base.

He wanted to take his time and kiss it all over.

Ryuu made a strangled noise behind his arm. 

“Won’t you look at me?” Tenn said, and looked up just as Ryuu found the strength in him to peer down his body.

Tenn locked eyes with him and licked his cock from base to tip.

The noise he made was almost a squeal. “T-tenn!” He burrowed into his arm again.

Tenn let the vibration from his laugh tickle Ryuu through his lips just barely touching him. “You are so cute,” he said in a breath. “Ryunosuke.”

He took delight in how Ryuu bit his lip at that. He wanted to hear what other adorable sounds Ryuu could make.

He parted his lips and tested how deep he could take Ryuu into his mouth. 

Ryuu mewled, tossing his arms around. “Tenn,” he said again.

Tenn released him. “Tell me if it’s too much,” he said. “Tell me if you want me to stop.”

Ryuu was a whimpering mess as it was. Perhaps he was being cruel to enjoy this.

“I don’t want you to stop,” Ryuu said, in barely a whisper. “Not yet.”

“But you would tell me if you did?”

“Of course.”

He seemed sincere in that, which allowed Tenn to relax a little. “Then, don’t worry about a thing,” he said, and rubbed Ryuu’s thigh. 

He went down again, until the tip of Ryuu’s cock hit the back of his mouth. It disappointed him to find that he had only taken maybe half of the length. He let off and tried again.

He found that if he held his breath, he could push Ryuu deeper for a second or two without choking. His next discovery was that he liked it, trying to get as much of Ryuu down his throat as he could. 

“Careful, Tenn...”

He eased off, pulling a string of saliva away with his lips. “I’m fine.”

“Don’t push yourself.” Ryuu was already sucking in huge breaths. “You could just use your hands.”

“But you didn’t hold back with your mouth for me.”

“Yes, but...” He propped himself up on his arms. “I don’t want to get you dirty. You’re so beautiful. And we already showered—“

“We can always take another shower,” Tenn chuckled. He leaned in to give Ryuu a quick kiss. “I want you to make me dirty.”

If Ryuu could blush anymore, he would have. “That’s too sexy,” he sputtered. “Tenn, go easy on me.”

“I’m trying,” he said, but he couldn’t help it. It was too fun to tease him. He brushed the bangs away from Ryuu’s forehead and kissed him there. “You make it hard to hold back.”

“I don’t think I can come in your mouth...”

Ryuu’s heart was beating so fast, Tenn could feel it under his hands when he touched him. “Would you like to finish inside me instead?”

Ryuu failed to respond in actual words. Broken sounds, fragments of words that didn’t mean much

Tenn chuckled softly and gave him another chaste kiss. “You don’t have to.” He reached for the bottle of lotion and he coated his hands once more. “Stay still, I’ll do as you wish.”

Ryuu stayed in that position, propped up high enough to watch, as Tenn straddled him just below the hips. 

Tenn’s cock trembled even at his own touch. He let it slide against Ryuu’s, enjoying the comparison. Ryuu’s looked even bigger next to his.

“It’s pretty,” Ryuu said. “So pink.”

Tenn flushed at that. “You always have to say something unnecessary.”

Ryuu smiled. Maybe he like to tease, too. 

Tenn closed his palm around both their dicks to hold them together, and bucked his hips once, slow, testing. 

Ryuu seemed happy with this new direction he’d taken. He looked up at him dreamy-eyed, no arms over his face. “Tenn, you are so soft.”

“Does it feel good?”

“Yes.” Ryuu closed his eyes and hummed in pleasure. 

This was slow and easy, but Tenn supposed it would do. They had all day. Maybe all week.

The guttural sound in Ryuu’s chest as he got closer and closer to climax was worth it.

Tenn felt his body arc upwards under him, and the warmth of wet, sticky come on his hand. The sight of it rolling down his leg almost brought him to completion himself, but not quite.

Ryuu panted, sucking big breaths into his chest. Soon as he could move again, he grabbed Tenn and kissed him.

“You didn’t come,” he said.

“I already did in the shower, it’s fine.”

But when Ryuu’s hand felt in between his legs, he didn’t complain. He especially didn’t complain when Ryuu, in the afterglow of orgasm, planted sloppy kisses all over whatever skin he could reach. 

He fell back against the blankets and let Ryuu smother him in affection. 

“Does it feel good if I touch you this way?”

Tenn thought the grip Ryuu had on his cock was clumsy and erratic, but it was working for him. “Yes.”

***

The first time Tenn came, it was in the shower, dark and steamy. Tenn had been standing, bracing himself against the wall.

This time, Ryuu was holding him, and to feel Tenn shake and let go in his arms was something beautiful. The strangled sigh followed by his deep breaths of air were like music.

He kissed Tenn over and over. Tenn who was as sweet as ice cream. 

As the glow faded from them, they laid together in a tangle of limbs and sheets. The rain fell in waves, soft and then loud. The ocean churned.

It was starting to get warm.

“No air conditioning,” Tenn groaned. “And we cant open a window.”

“We could take a shower again and run cold water this time.”

“Not quite yet.” He flopped on his side and curled into Ryuu’s arms. 

They laid there for a moment, happy not to be moving. Then there came a sound from Tenn, a gurgling sound.

“What is that?”

“You didn’t hear anything.”

“Was that your stomach?”

Tenn rolled away. “No.”

He laughed and reached out to pull Tenn back to him. “You’re hungry.”

“We didn’t have a big breakfast today.”

“You’re right. Let me cook for you.”

Tenn pouted at him. “But then we have to get out of bed.”

“The bed is going to be here all week,” he said. The words were punctuated by another clap of thunder. “Seems like it’s closer now.”

Tenn fastened the robe around his waist once again and hopped out of the bed, perhaps trying to hide another grumble of his stomach. “It seems that way, yes.”

Ryuu stood and hugged him from behind, planting a kiss on his head. The freedom to smother him in affection made him realize just how much he had always wanted to. Now he was never going to stop. “Not afraid of thunder are you?”

Tenn scoffed. “I’m not a child, so no.”

“But it’s startling for anyone if it booms really loud, right?”

Tenn smirked at him. “Do you need me to hold you tight and tell you it’s just a sound?”

“I don’t think I _need_ you to, but I’d like it anyway.”

Tenn smiled and opened his mouth to retort to that, but a loud crack of thunder just over the house cut him off. Both he and Ryuu jumped and grabbed each other.

They laughed at themselves. 

Ryuu kissed Tenn one more time before going to the kitchen.


	3. Chapter 3

Tenn went back to the bathroom to wash off while Ryuu cooked. The lights were still out, but he could see clearly enough in the dim light from the window to find a washcloth and work the sink.

He washed the sticky residue from his stomach first, most of it Ryuu’s. It didn’t make him feel dirty, that was just a hot thing to say to Ryuu in the throes of it all. 

That done, he washed his hands and splashed his face with water. Though he’d just been in the shower, he’d already broken a sweat. 

Tenn was not unused to pushing back his feelings. It was second nature by now. In situations like this, where he’d actually prefer to feel his way through something, it was difficult for him to leave the lid off the box.

When he did, it would often release some pesky demon he’d rather not think about. But not this time.

As he stood there naked and looking into the bathroom mirror in the dusky light, he only felt warmth. Even thoughts like _What are we going to do?_ and _What are we going to tell people?_ seemed too far away to worry about.

He put the robe back on. Too bad it was so plain. If he had known about any of this, he would have packed something more interesting to wear. But this would have to do.

In hindsight, he should have known that a vacation to a private house on the beach carried a little more to it than two good friends, whether Ryuu had realized it or not. He wondered if Gaku knew all along, and that’s why he refused. He wondered if Gaku would laugh at him. _Thats fine, I’d deserve it this time._

When he emerged from the bathroom, Ryuu was in the kitchen cooking food in two pans. One with seasoned meat, the other with sautéed vegetables.

“That’s only going to make the heat worse,” Tenn sighed.

“I’m cooking it all at once super fast,” Ryuu said. “Don’t worry.”

Tenn stepped closer until he was at his side and peeked over his arm. “The meat smells good.”

“So you’ll have some after all, right?” Ryuu leaned down and gave him a peck on the cheek.

That was something he’d have to get used to. “Okay, you won me over.”

They ate together by candle light. 

“I haven’t heard much thunder,” Ryuu said. “Maybe the worst of it passed.”

Tenn was aware of part of himself wishing the storm would go on, that they’d be separated from the rest of the world for weeks to come. But his louder, more rational voice shouted back, reminding him of their appointments on the following Friday.

“How are you feeling?”

Tenn looked up to find Ryuu looking at him again with that soft, adoring expression. 

“I feel great,” he said. “I apologize if I’m quiet.”

Ryuu put his hand on top of Tenn’s head and ruffled his hair. “It’s okay. I know that’s just how you are.”

Tenn liked this, the easy quiet when they were together. 

***

Ryuu cleaned the plates and put them away. Tenn went to brush his teeth. Ryuu wondered if it was because he meant to kiss him more soon, and his heart fluttered. 

He could live like this. Just as they had been, close to each other, and with Gaku too. But with the new permission he had to lean over and kiss Tenn, to hold him, to lay next to him in bed.

He was excited. To sleep in bed with Tenn. To hold Tenn in the dark blanketed by the sound of the ocean and the rain. 

Tenn returned from the bathroom and took hold of his arm. He liked to lead him around, and Ryuu liked being led around.

“Wait, Tenn,” he said. “I need to brush my teeth, too.”

“Hurry up then,” Tenn said, and released him. 

It was the fastest and most thorough teeth brushing of Ryuu’s life.

In the bedroom, he found Tenn sitting on his knees and looking over the head of the bed out through the window that faced the ocean. Rain was pouring. The sun was somewhere behind the clouds. 

He climbed into the bed behind Tenn and rubbed his back, just a light touch at first. When Tenn seemed amenable to this, he began kneading with his hands.

Tenn didn’t look up, but let his head drop to Ryuu’s shoulder. “I like this place.”

“That’s good news,” Ryuu said with a small laugh. “We are stuck here. I thought for sure you’d get bored.”

“On the contrary, it’s so nice to do nothing for once.”

Ryuu hadn’t thought of that, but it was true. It was so nice not to worry about practice in the morning. “But it’s not nothing,” he said. He wrapped his arms around Tenn’s waist. “I get to hug you, that’s doing something.”

“I’m not going to tell you to stop.”

“Oh, good! Because I like doing it.”

They watched the rain together. Ryuu could feel Tenn’s breaths slow, until he was in rhythm with the ocean. 

There was a digital clock plugged into the wall on a nightstand beside the bed, but it’s face was blank. Ryuu hadn’t looked at his phone since this morning, he had been so absorbed.

What time was it? The sun was still out there somewhere but hidden, and the summer days were long. It could have been afternoon or late evening, he wouldn’t have known.

He felt his body droop in a lazy stupor and started awake again. He shook his head to try to wake himself up, but ended up yawning.

“Time for a nap?” Tenn asked. He turned and pat his hands on his lap in invitation. 

“Really?” 

Tenn laughed. “You sound excited about this.”

“Of course I am.” He laid his head down on Tenn’s legs and nuzzled into them. “Ah, it’s softer than I even imagined.”

“Is this something you think about a lot?” As he said it, his fingers wove into Ryuu’s hair. 

The sensation was maddening. “Yes,” he said. “I’m guilty.”

“You have such pure desires,” Tenn said. “You know, we can’t do this a lot once we go home.”

He didn’t want to think about that. “I know.”

“So let me indulge you with anything you want while we have this place to ourselves. Just ask me.”

Ryuu thought, this is what a cat feels like when it’s purring. “The thing I always wanted the most...”

“What is it?” Tenn ticked him behind his ear. So good. If this was an interrogation, he’d spill all his secrets.

“I want to hear you sing just for me.”

“Ah, how greedy.”

“Ah, no! I didn’t mean to be!”

“Relax, I’m kidding.” He sighed. “You are so hard to tease, sometimes.”

Ryuu relaxed again. “Okay. You don’t have to sing, but I love the sound of your voice.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll grant your wish.” Tenn cleared his throat. “This is a song my instructor taught me in America when I was learning English.”

_You are my sunshine, my only sunshine_  
You make me happy when skies are grey  
You'll never know, dear, how much I love you  
Please don't take my sunshine away  


“What a nice song,” Ryuu sighed. He knew very little English, but he had heard the melody before in American TV shows, perhaps.

“It’s about a man whose lover left him, so he spites her.”

“Really? That’s not a nice song at all!”

Tenn laughed. “I just like the chorus. It reminds me of you.”

“Sunshine?”

Tenn leaned over and kissed his head. “Yeah.”

***

Tenn hummed a tune and twisted his fingers in Ryuu’s hair until he was asleep peacefully in his lap. Riku used to sleep like this sometimes when they were kids. He considered himself an experienced lap pillow.

The headboard of this bed was plush, but he didn’t want to sleep. There wasn’t much chance of his dreams being any better than what was really happening. Between the rain, the candle light, the ocean, and the feeling of Ryuu’s soft breaths against him, he drifted off.

An unknown amount of time later, he was awakened as Ryuu lifted his head out of his lap.

It was dark. Most of his tea candles had burned out, and the sun had set some time ago.

Ryuu yawned and stretched his arms. “I’m not used to napping like this.”

Tenn laughed. “Me either.” Certainly not in their line of work.

Ryuu flopped out of the bed and fished around the floor where he’d slept the last night. His phone was there, and still charged. “Looks like it’s 20:05,” he said.

Tenn had located his on phone on the night stand. “Does your phone get any signal?”

“Just barely,” he said. “I’m trying to check the weather report.”

Tenn did the same with no luck. 

“Looks like the storm will be clear by 14:00 tomorrow,” Ryuu said. “There’s a thunderstorm warning, but it looks okay other than that.”

“That’s a relief.” Tenn hadn’t been worried about it, but he was glad that Ryuu would be at ease.

“We’d better conserve our phone batteries until the power comes back.”

“I have a backup charger, too.”

“Good thinking.” Ryuu smiled, but then his expression went back to a worried one. “Uh, Gaku sent a text to ask how we are handling the storm. What should I tell him?”

Tenn sighed. He had been hoping that the outside world would not creep into their little love nest until days later. “Okay, rule number one is going to be this. You can’t refer to our relationship in any written form, be it text or email. Those are too easy for someone to find.”

Ryuu sat down next to him. “Our relationship?”

Tenn blinked. He had said that. “Uh, yeah...”

Ryuu was grinning. “Can I call you my boyfriend?” 

Tenn puffed a breath, trying to banish the blush he knew was there. “Well not to anyone else, no.”

“But if it’s just us?”

“Yes. And maybe Gaku, as long as he won’t be too annoying about it.”

Ryuu hugged him tightly and plastered his cheek with kisses. “Thank you Tenn, it makes me so happy!”

“Calm down, there’s going to be a lot of ground rules.”

Ryuu bent his head like a puppy being scolded. “Okay.”

“In addition to no electronic messages about us, we can’t be affectionate in any public place.”

“I figured...”

“Only Gaku can know for now. Maybe eventually we can tell Anesagi—“

“What about Riku?”

Tenn flinched at the question. He processed the idea for a moment and then sighed. 

Ryuu nodded in silent understanding. He couldn’t tell his family, either. At least, not for now. 

Tenn leaned into Ryuu for some comfort that he knew he would be all too eager to give. He could be needy with him.

Ryuu pet his hair and held him to his chest tenderly. “If we are boyfriends, does this mean I can finally call you Tecchan?”

Tenn buried his face. “Please, no.”


	4. Chapter 4

Ryuu chuckled to himself as Tenn hid his face in his chest. He stroked his back with his hand. So soft.

There was a mixture of feelings. 

The idea of keeping this private made him indescribably sad. He wanted to take long walks together, and to steal kisses in the back of movies. Like normal people did.

Still, just feeling Tenn cuddled up against him like this was more than he could ever ask for. He was content, even if it could only be like this in stolen moments.

And more than that. If he looked down, he could see the back of Tenn’s neck and his shoulder blades under his loose robe. He had never felt such strong desire.

“Tenn, all that stuff we did before...”

Tenn raised his head. His eyebrows furrowed. “What about it?”

“I liked it a lot.”

Tenn’s eyes widened for a moment, then he relaxed, smiling. “I thought you were going to say we took things too far in the moment.”

Ryuu couldn’t help but laugh at that, although mostly at himself. “Maybe we did. But I liked it.”

Tenn rose up on his knees and leaned into him, with his weight in his hands on Ryuu’s shoulders. His eyes took on that cat-like quality that always made Ryuu shiver. “Is this your cute way of saying you’d like to do some more of that?”

Ryuu swallowed hard. “Maybe...”

Tenn kissed him. He tasted like mint.

Something about Tenn’s kisses made his heart beat fast. The way he moved his lips and his tongue. He’d pull away just to feel the sensation of dipping back in again. Ryuu tried to mimic it, but he wasn’t sure if he could ever do it as well as Tenn.

Tenn’s knees slid into his lap. His fingers dug into his hair. Ryuu could feel Tenn’s fingernails against his skin. His body grinding against him.

Tenn had so much desire that Ryuu had never known, and it was for him.

“Take me,” Tenn said. He was panting, his face was red. He looked down to Ryuu’s chest and up again. “I-I mean, ah, I’m doing it again. I didn’t mean to _tell_ you—“ His grip on Ryuu’s shoulder tightened. “I’m asking you. If you want to, then that’s what I want.”

Ryuu’s mind was a blur. Tenn’s mess of awkward words left him grasping for what to say. Tenn kept looking at him with his lips puffy and his hair in disarray, his eyes soft and yearning. “Y-you’re so cute,” He stammered.

Tenn was not amused. “I said _fuck me_ and you think that’s _cute_?”

“No, I mean! I was thinking that in my head and I couldn’t think of what to say and it just came out!”

Tenn sucked in a huge breath and released it in a sigh. “What did you mean to say?”

“That I... I really don’t know how to uh...” Ryuu was panicking. He didn’t want to annoy Tenn, but he was clueless about this. “I mean, I’ve read things?” 

“Calm down.” Tenn smiled at him. It looked like he was off the hook. “Just lay back and I’ll—Ah. I mean, If you would please, then I will show you, if you want me to.”

Ryuu shook his head. “Tenn, you can be bossy, it’s okay.”

“Now I’m _bossy_?”

“No, that’s!” He hung his in dismay and took a deep breath. “It seems like we both have trouble talking about this, huh?”

Tenn pouted. “I’m trying.”

“I know, I know.” He wrapped his arms around Tenn and kissed his forehead. “It’s sweet. It’s really sweet of you. But don’t worry. Just be normal. I like the real you, and uh... I kind of like it when you tell me what to do.”

“Oh...” That put a sparkle back in Tenn’s eyes. 

“So, what do you—“

Tenn pushed with all of his weight. Ryuu hit the mattress with a thud. Tenn looked down at him. The look in his eyes was hungry and wild. The long parts of his hair hung into Ryuu’s face. “If that’s the case, then I’m going to ride your cock.”

Ryuu swallowed hard. “Tenn—”

He barely had the name out of his mouth before Tenn was kissing him again. 

He clutched at Tenn’s hair to try and hold him there. He could never have his fill of kissing him. But Tenn broke his hold and sat up, straddled across his lap.

He whipped the robe off his body. It didn’t matter how recently Ryuu had seen him naked, every time was like a revelation. The last candle in the room was weak. Tenn’s body cast a shadow over his. 

“You must like it,” he said. The cheeks of his ass rubbed against Ryuu’s cock as he moved. “You’re so hard already.”

“You don’t have to do much,” Ryuu sighed. “Looking the way that you do.”

Tenn smiled. “Oh yeah?”

Ryuu knew Tenn was teasing him, and he wouldn’t have it any other way. He trailed up Tenn’s body with this hands, letting his fingers graze over every ridge and curve. “Yeah, you’re so—“. He laughed. “Sorry, I keep trying to think of more words other than beautiful.”

“It works for me.” He showed Ryuu a bottle he’d found earlier and placed by the bed. “If I’d have known this was going to happen I would have brought a more appropriate lube, but I’ve used this on myself before and it works fine.” 

“On... yourself?”

“Yeah.” He smiled as sweetly as if he was talking about cookies and pie. “I’ll show you in just a minute. But first, let me know if it bothers you. I haven’t used it on another person before.”

“Okay, but—“

He began to rub it on his hands and then raised up on his knees. Ryuu watched, speechless and unable to tear his eyes away. Tenn reached behind and began to dig into himself with his fingers.

Finding some trouble with that, he changed position, leaning onto his hands and knees over Ryuu before doing it again. His face softened as he found the right angle. His fingers sunk deep into himself.

The more Ryuu watched, the more he wanted to be the one making Tenn feel that way. He wanted to touch Tenn deep inside and make him part his lips and pant like that.

“I like the way you’re looking at me.” 

Ryuu’s eyes snapped back to Tenn’s face. He hadn’t noticed them wandering. 

Ryuu’s whole body shuddered as Tenn slicked him up with the lube. It snapped him out of the daze of watching Tenn, but didn’t do much to clear his mind.

Tenn took Ryuu’s hands and placed them at his hips. Ryuu wasn’t sure what to do with them. He wasn’t sure he could help guide or direct. But if Tenn wanted his hands on him, that’s what he would do.

It served more as an anchor for himself when Tenn began to lower down onto his cock. Warm and slick.

Tenn whimpered. Ryuu squeezed his hips to stop. “Don’t force it,” he said. “If it hurts, you shouldn’t...”

“I’m all right,” he said, and pet Ryuu’s belly to calm him. “It’s just that I’ve never taken anything as big as you.”

That only left him wondering what kind of things Tenn was putting inside himself, and how he knew so much about all of this.

Tenn began to press down little by little, taking short breaks. Soon the head of his cock was fully inside, and Ryuu’s head swam with how tight it was. He couldn’t stop himself from squeezing his grip on Tenn’s hips.

Tenn kept going until it was all in, somehow. All of that inside his slender little body. 

Ryuu thought he would melt into the bed. “You feel so good,” he gasped. “Tenn, you...”

Tenn had been trying to suppress his reactions, but a small yelp finally worked its way out of him. 

“Are you okay?”

He tried to sit up, and Tenn pushed him back down. “Not yet,” he said, and Ryuu could see the lump in his throat bob as he swallowed. His voice was raspy when he spoke. “Just hold still.”

Ryuu couldn’t argue. He let himself relax into the mattress. “Gorgeous,” he said. “That’s another word.”

***

_This is hardly the time to be working on your vocabulary,_ Tenn wanted to say, but he was so full of Ryuu, he wasn’t sure he could speak.

Ryuu was spread out beneath him   
all flushed and gasping. Sweat beading on his skin and rolling down the curves of his well-sculpted body. 

He began to lift up and slide down again, hands pressed firmly against Ryuu’s stomach. It was much easier the second time. Ryuu’s cock was so big, it made finding his sweet spot a moot point. It was pressing up against everything inside him.

He’d been doing this for the thrill of seeing Ryuu all pleasure-wrecked beneath him, but he found himself feeling so good he might come before he could take advantage of it.

And that would be a shame. He wanted Ryuu to pant and moan. It would be a waste of all this prep if he got off now.

He arched his back and began to roll up and down again, not as slow as before. His head swam as all that fullness left him and pushed back in again, just as good with each stroke.

He’d dreamt of this on dark lonely nights, guilty dreams where he’d touch himself and try not to imagine Ryuu’s face. 

The real thing was so much more. Ryuu’s body hot and alive beneath him, muscles tightening as he struggled with the intensity of Tenn riding him.

Soon he could hear fragments of his name from Ryuu’s lips, not quite formed. As he quickened the pace, they became louder.

“Tenn, I’m going to...”

“Come then,” Tenn said. Ryuu liked it when he was bossy, after all.

Ryuu moaned his name louder. Must have been just right.

Ryuu bucked upward so hard that it sent a raw jolt of pain through him. Tenn liked it. Not so much the pain itself—although that wasn’t bad—but the proof of how unwound Ryuu had become.

He could feel Ryuu release inside him. A strange, warm sensation. He lifted his hips up again to ride Ryuu through this, and it leaked out of him. 

Ryuu whimpered. “Tenn...”

“You’re done, huh?” He leaned forward until Ryuu’s cock slipped from his ass and kissed Ryuu sweetly on his forehead. “Good. That was so good, Ryuu.”

Ryuu was too wrecked to respond. His chest rose and fell in huge breaths. His arms laid at his sides, sapped of strength.

Tenn reveled in his victory. Ryuu worn out and ragged under him, spent up. He kissed his lips and ran his hands through his hair.

Ryuu hummed a happy sound that was almost more or a groan, then he laughed. “Tenn, you are so sweet.”

Tenn curled up on his chest, paying no mind to the mess between his legs. Soon Ryuu wrapped his arms around him. “Did you like it?”

“Ah, that felt too good.”

“Too good?”

“I don’t know how else to say it.”

Tenn kissed his cheek. “Then I’m glad. Too good you can’t describe it? I didn’t know I could do that.”

“You seemed like you knew it,” Ryuu chuckled. “Always so confident. I love you, Tenn.”

Tenn let those words wash over him. “Love me?” He smiled and drew little shapes on Ryuu’s chest.

“Is it weird to say that?”

“No, I...” Tenn laid his head against him. With his ear to Ryuu’s chest, he could hear his heart beating. “I don’t think this feeling is just afterglow.”

They laid there until their breath had slowed and their hearts had calmed. The warmth in his heart remained.

Ryuu regained some of his strength, at least enough to sit up and scoop Tenn up with him. “So, you liked it?”

Tenn almost laughed at that. “Of course. I just didn’t want to finish until you were done.”

“Do you want to do it again?”

“What? Already?” Tenn looked down to find Ryuu was half hard. He sighed. “I should have expected this.”

Ryuu held him in his lap and began to run his hands all over, soft and affectionate. He peppered him with soft kisses. Tenn’s body shuddered, still sensitive and needing.

“In your dreams,” Ryuu said. His voice was soft and timid, but he pushed through with his question without faltering. “What do I do?”

What a question. More like, what didn’t he do in Tenn’s touch-starved dreams? “Bend me over,” he said, because that is what he wanted the most. “And fuck me slowly.”

Ryuu swallowed so hard Tenn could hear it in his throat. “Slowly...” He began to guide Tenn back into the bed. “I want to do it that way, too.”

Tenn rolled into his hands and knees. He was still dripping with Ryuu’s come and didn’t care. The thought of Ryuu fucking it back into him made him wish he could watch. 

Ryuu placed his hands on Tenn’s hips. “Tell me if I do anything wrong.”

“You’re fine.”

Ryuu began to rub his dick against the split of Tenn’s ass. Tenn shivered with how much he wanted it back inside him. Soon Ryuu was hard again, just as much as before.

He pressed in slowly, so slowly. 

Tenn savored every second of it, being filled up again in slow motion. “Yes,” he said in a breathy voice. “Just like that.”

Ryuu pulled back by about half his length and pressed in again. 

Tenn whimpered as this went on, the gentle dip and pull. Again and again, each time just as slow.

Soon he was shaking and couldn’t hold himself up by his arms. He let his head drop to the mattress and gave in.

Ryuu moved his hands, big warm hands that he had, to Tenn’s waist to hold him steady. He pulled tenn back onto his cock and pushed him back off again. Just as slow and gentle as before, but so much deeper.

The sound Tenn made was embarrassing. It felt so good he could cry. At first he was trying to give encouragement. _Yes, hold me just like that,_ and, _Yes, fuck me like that_, but it began to sound so annoying to his own his ears, and soon he had trouble forming words anyway.

“You’re so beautiful like this,” Ryuu said in a whisper. “Tenn, like this, you’re so...”

“More,” Tenn begged. He could feel tears in his eyes. He couldn’t stop all the lewd things in his head from spilling out. “Your cock is so good, fuck me _harder_.”

Ryuu obeyed him and the slow dipping motion turned into a light tap. As Tenn let himself get louder, Ryuu’s pace picked up until he was pounding.

Tenn was happy for this remote beach house blanketed by the storm. He could be as loud as he had ever wanted to be.

He felt the arc of the crescendo and wanted to finish at the peak of it. “Can you touch me?” He panted, barely able to form the words.

Ryuu slipped one hand around his waist to reach him. This made the angle he was fucking him not quite as deep as before, but Tenn was at the end, it didn’t matter.

Ryuu’s grasp on his cock was just what he needed. Sloppy and clumbsy as it was as Ryuu continued to move inside him, Tenn just needed that touch to get over the edge.

He clutched the blankets as he came. It felt like the world was spinning around him. His body shivered and twitched. 

Ryuu crashed into bed beside him. The mattress bounced under his huge body.

Tenn clutched his face and kissed him frantically. He slathered him in kisses until the last shimmer of stars faded, and that took a while longer than it had ever before.

“Te— Tenn, let me breathe!”

Tenn hadn’t realized he was smothering him and began to laugh. “I cant feel my legs.”

“What? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine, it’s a good thing. It’s a very good thing.” He was still panting. His face was flushed and he spoke with a sporadic energy that was so unlike him. “Ryuu, I’m going to say that I love you too, but I’m going to wait until my head stops spinning so you’ll know that I mean it.”

“Tenn, that’s—I mean, you sure you’re okay?”

Tenn wondered if this is what people meant when they talked about fucking someone’s brains out. He felt significantly more stupid than a moment ago.

He nuzzled Ryuu’s nose and kissed him. “I’m all right. How about you? Do you want me to help you finish once more?”

“I uh...” Ryuu blushed. “I already did. You were having so much fun I guess you didn’t notice...”

Tenn hadn’t. He buried his face into Ryuu’s neck and laughed against his skin. “Ah, I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be, it was really... all of it was...”

Tenn felt Ryuu’s fingers comb through his hair. He lifted his face to find Ryuu staring at him again with that same adoring look.

“How about we hit the shower again?”

Tenn nodded his head. Good as he felt, he couldn’t deny he was sticky, sore, and his limbs felt utterly boneless. “I want a bath. A hot one.”

Ryuu sat up. “Okay, I’m on it!”

Tenn’s arm was too weak to stop Ryuu from running off. Soon he could hear water running. 

While Ryuu kindly drew a bath, Tenn took the moment to let his feelings wash over him again. Good feelings. 

***

Ryuu went about his task pretty much on autopilot. His head was overflowing with thoughts.

Was that really Tenn Kujo in there, who had screamed his name so loud? Was that Tenn who was so giddy he couldn’t stop laughing? Was that really Ryuu Tsunashi, who had done those things? And done them well, or at least Tenn seemed to think so.

He couldn’t stop blushing thinking about it. 

With the power out, he wasn’t sure if the hot water heater would work. Thankfully, it must have had a gas pilot. Soon, steam started to float up from the tub. Tenn would get his wish.

The room was very dark now that the sun had set. He lit several candles and placed them all over. It wasn’t until he was done that he realized it made for some relaxing mood lighting. Romantic, even. 

Back in the bedroom, Tenn was sitting up on the bed, waiting.

“Don’t leave me next time,” Tenn said, and flashed him a bright smile.

Ryuu leaned down and kissed his cheek. “Want me to carry you?”

Tenn bristled at that. As much as he’d like to carry Tenn in his arms, he doubted Tenn would let him. “I can walk just fine,” Tenn huffed. “But could you lend me your arm?”

Ryuu did so without even teasing him about it.

He wondered if he would ever get used to this. Just the other day, the sight of Tenn’s bare shoulders was enough to take his breath away. Now he was leading a very naked Tenn down a dark hallway. When they entered the bathroom where there was light, he could see him from every angle.

“Why are you so quiet all of the sudden?” 

Ryuu was pretty sure from the way Tenn kept sending those clever glances his way that he knew exactly why. “Your body...” 

Tenn chuckled and shrugged his shoulders. “You’re still shy after that?” He gestured to the tub. “You first.”

“Huh? Me?”

“Yes, you’re the big one, so get in first.”

Ryuu understood suddenly. He had thought of them sitting in the big tub facing each other, maybe with their legs propped up on either side. But Tenn wanted to be held. That was cute. It got him so excited that he sloshed water over the edge as he sat in the tub.

“You filled it too high,” Tenn sighed. “Well, I suppose it’s fine.”

Ryuu let himself sink into the hot water. Tenn lowered himself carefully in after him, and laid back against Ryuu’s chest.

Ryuu exhaled a deep sigh and let himself relax. Tenn nuzzled into him. With both their mass taking up the tub, the waterline rose to just under Tenn’s chin. 

“Ah perfect,” Tenn said. “You are a nice pillow.”

“I’m happy to provide my pillow services any time.”

He felt Tenn sigh and relax even deeper into his arms. “I meant it, you know.”

“Meant what?”

“It’s not just because you were so good,” Tenn said. The laugh that followed sounded somewhat self-deprecating. “I do love you. I mean, I’ve said that, even before this.”

Ryuu closed his arms around Tenn’s shoulders and kissed the top of his head. “You don’t have to explain how you feel.”

Tenn was silent. They laid there in the warm water, the flicker of candles, and the patter of rain.

A small whimpering sound came from Tenn’s chest. Ryuu could feel him shudder and swallow it back. “Thank you,” he said. “I like it this way.”

“Of course.” Ryuu laughed softly and kissed him again. “Tenten.”

Tenn splashed him.


	5. Morning Glow

After their bath, Tenn went through every step of his skincare routine. Over the weekend, he had skipped it a few times, with the kids being around and everything.

By the time he did that and got back to the bedroom, Ryuu was changing the sheets.

Tenn sighed. Even after a relaxing bath, Ryuu couldn’t stop fussing. “Were they really that dirty?”

“Eh...”. Ryuu seemed uncomfortable with describing the specific manner in which they were soiled. 

“Thanks.” Tenn pat Ryuu’s shoulder. Having clean sheets was always nicer, regardless of the reason. 

Ryuu smiled at the touch. “Are you ready for bed?”

“I’m exhausted.”

“Then go ahead, I only changed the bedsheets, since I don’t think we will need the comforter anyway.”

Tenn took off his robe and slipped into the sheets, bare and smooth all over in the dim candle light. He delighted in how Ryuu squirmed, even though they’d already done so many things with each other’s bodies.

“Would it make you more comfortable if I put on some shorts?”

Ryuu shook his head. “No. It’s hot, after all. I’m sorry if I’m staring a lot.”

Tenn smiled. It would be easy to tease him. All he had to do was stick his leg out, or let the sheet fall below his waist. But then they’d be wound up again, and Tenn wasn’t sure his body could take another round. So he let him go with a merciful shrug. “It’s fine.”

“Should I, also...?” Ryuu blushed as he said it.

“Only if you want to,” Tenn said. “If you prefer to keep your pants on, that’s okay. You’re better in the heat that I am.”

“But, would you like it?”

Tenn laughed. “Of course. But you don’t have to do everything I’d like.”

Ryuu took his pants off and hopped into the bed with a big smile on his face. 

“You should blow out the candles.”

Ryuu rolled onto his side and looked at Tenn. He smoothed his hand against his cheek. “In a minute. I was waiting for this for a long time.”

“For what?”

“To fall asleep next to you,” he said. “I can’t wait to wake up and see you again.”

Tenn sighed. It was hard to imagine how a big sweet dope like Ryuu had falling in love with someone like him. “You’re ridiculous.”

Ryuu grinned and nuzzled into Tenn’s cheek as he snuck an arm underneath him to hold him close. “Maybe I am. That’s okay with me.”

Tenn gave in to the affection Ryuu was eager to share, and tucked his head underneath his chin, burrowed against him. He knew that they would need to talk about the reality of their situation in more detail sometime soon, but was content to ignore that for now. To let this moment keep going.

He didn’t want to sleep. He didn’t want the morning to come so soon, but after all they’d been through that evening, he couldn’t keep his eyes open.

***

He woke again before long. It was too hot, and Ryuu’s body temperature didn’t help that. When shifted, his skin peeled off Ryuu’s like he was a leather seat in the sun.

Ryuu woke at that, anyone would. He mumbled through his half awake state: “Are you okay?”

“I hate to say so, but it’s not very comfortable.” Because he’d insisted on sleeping naked, every part of him was sticking together. 

“That’s okay.” Ryuu yawned. The candles had burned out, and it was pitch dark. Tenn guessed they’d only been asleep for a few hours. 

Ryuu pulled away from him and went to find something in the kitchen. He saw a flashlight and another lit candle.

Tenn was so hot, he wished he could run outside and jump into the ocean. Probably a bad idea, with how hard the wind was still blowing.

Ryuu returned with a bundle of ice wrapped in a cloth. It was already melting, the fridge hadn’t had power for at least twelve hours.

He gladly took it and pressed it to his face.

From nowhere, a gust of wind blew on him. Tenn looked to find Ryuu fanning him with a tourist pamphlet.

Tenn laughed. “Feels good, but can you keep it up all night?”

“At least until you are able to sleep again.”

Tenn removed the pack of ice from his face and pressed it against Ryuu’s neck. His skin was glistening with sweat. “Aren’t you hot, too?” 

“I’m more used to it.”

“Uhg. It’s the stuffy air that’s the worst part.”

Ryuu thought to himself a moment. “The patio is on the side opposite the wind, so maybe I could open the door for a bit. It’s not as bad as it was earlier today.”

“As long as it’s safe.”

“It should be all right if it’s just for a minute.”

They put their shorts on and walked to the living room. Ryuu slid the glass door open. A gust of fresh cool air blew inside. 

“Yeah, the worst of it must be hitting the front of the house,” Ryuu said. He took Tenn’s hand. “Come on. Have you ever seen the ocean at night like this?”

He led him outside, but not any farther than the edge of the porch. The wind would prove to be a problem if they strayed too far from the door.

With the power outage and the cloudy skies, there was barely any light to see by. Tenn could make out the foam on the crashing waves, but beyond that was a black abyss.

Ryuu sighed. By the look on his face, Tenn could tell that he was disappointed. “It’s a lot nicer when the sky is clear and you can see the stars. And when the ocean is calm and relaxing.”

“We will have to come back someday.”

Ryuu squeezed his hand. “Yeah. For sure, we will.”

The wind picked up and blew a spray of rain onto them. To Tenn it was a welcome balm against the heat, but Ryuu moved to brace against it. 

Tenn sighed. Ryuu’s protective instincts would never change. But while he didn’t need any protection from a bit of rain, he was worried that the rental could be damaged if they left the door open much longer.

“Let’s go back inside,” Ryuu said. 

“Okay. I feel cooler at least.”

“Good.”

The door had only been open for a few minutes, but the air inside the beach house had improved at least a bit. Tenn drank a glass of water before returning to bed.

“Should I keep my arms to myself?” Ryuu asked that with such a sad tone that Tenn thought he’d rather deal with being sticky.

“Maybe just a little,” he said, and crawled back into bed. He turned his back against Ryuu and pulled one of his hands over his stomach. That way it was still quite intimate, but Ryuu was not enveloping him with his entire body. There were a few inches of space between them to let them breathe. “This is perfect.”

Ryuu hummed a contented sound. “Okay.” 

Tenn felt a soft kiss against the back of his neck. “Hey don’t start that, or I’ll never get back to sleep.”

“Sorry, I couldn’t resist.” Ryuu inhaled a deep breath. “Your hair smells really good.”

“It’s nothing special, we used the same shampoo.”

“I think it’s special because it’s on you.”

Tenn sighed. “So that’s how it’s going to be, huh? I may as well get used to it.”

Ryuu yawned, barely following. “Used to what?”

“How affectionate you can be when I give you permission.”

Ryuu nuzzled against the back of his head. It tickled. “You act like you hate it.”

“I don’t. But I’m not used to it.”

“Okay.” He gave Tenn a soft pat on the head and then stopped, satisfied with the arm around Tenn’s belly and nothing more. “I’ll give you just a little bit at a time.”

“You don’t have to hold back. When this vacation of ours is over, we will have much fewer opportunities to be together like this.”

Ryuu didn’t answer. Tenn worried he’d made him upset, and opened his mouth as he tried to think of what he should say. But it wasn’t that. If Ryuu’s soft breaths against his neck were any indication, he’d fallen asleep to the sound of Tenn’s voice.

“I’ll see you in the morning,” he whispered. “Goodnight.”

—-

When Ryuu woke, he was certain he was still dreaming.

The wind was still blowing, but the rain was no more than a light patter on the roof. Some light, although not much, made its way through the clouds and lit up the window.

Tenn laid beside him, having turned over to face him at some point in his sleep. The sheets were bunched up around his feet. His bare shoulders were glowing in the weak daylight. 

Fortunately for Ryuu’s heart, he had gone to bed the second time wearing a pair of shorts so as to avoid getting so sticky in the heat. Otherwise the angelic vision may have been too much for him.

Ryuu laid there and tried not to move or make a sound. He wanted Tenn to sleep as long as he wanted, and he was content to watch him. He was going to etch this moment into his heart and carry it with him for the rest of his life.

Not much time passed before Tenn sucked a deep breath into his chest and stretched like a cat. When he laid still again, his eyes were open, puffy and unfocused. He was smiling. “Good morning.”

“It’s a beautiful morning,” Ryuu said, and kissed Tenn’s forehead.

“Seems like it still stormy to me.”

He combed his fingers into Tenn’s hair and relished the extra soft way that tenn smiled up at him. “I got to watch you sleeping.”

Tenn frowned. “That’s embarrassing. How long did you let me snooze away?”

“Not long. You should go back to sleep if you’re tired.”

Tenn nuzzled into his shoulder. “Sleeping in is not very professional.”

Ryuu hummed a laugh against his shoulder. “We’re on vacation.”

“All right, you convinced me.”

“Seems like I didn’t have to try very hard.”

He felt Tenn blow a warm sigh against his bare skin. Soon he was asleep again, his chest expanding and releasing in slow breaths. 

Ryuu brushed the bangs away from Tenn’s eyes and laid there, holding him.

—-

Tenn wasn’t sleeping as much as he was enjoying the lazy in-between, a state he so seldom got to indulge in.

The night had cooled the house and that morning the temperature had dropped. Still warm, but not so oppressive that the heat of Ryuu’s body made him uncomfortable. Rather, he liked laying there and listening to Ryuu’s heartbeat. 

It had been so long since he’d experienced this kind of closeness. Not since he’d left the Nanase household. Since then, he had stomped the desire for it out of his heart so the lack of it wouldn’t torture him any longer, and he’d been fine without it.

Ryuu’s warmth and gentle affection crept into his heart and gave him a taste for it again. 

It was going to hurt to pull himself away, but there was comfort in knowing that he could steal Ryuu away again someday, even if it was a rare thing.

The buzzing of his cell phone pulled him out of the imitation of sleep he was doing. He groaned as he left Ryuu’s tender embrace and rolled over to the nightstand to pick it up.

Seeing that it was Gaku, he almost hung up.

“What is it?”

Gaku barked back. “Don’t give me that!” Then he paused. “Wait, Tenn, were you asleep?”

“What of it?”

“It’s noon already. Neither of you responded to my messages. I was getting worried! Don’t tell me you were sleeping the whole time.”

“What I was doing isn’t any of your business.”

“Hey, there’s no reason to cop an attitude, I was just worried about you!”

Tenn sighed as he felt Ryuu’s arms wrap around him from behind. He spoke softly into his ear. “Let him know that we’re okay.”

“We are fine,” Tenn said. “How is your vacation?”

“Closed the shop last night on account of the storm.”

“Was it bad in Tokyo?”

“Not so much, but we didn’t have any customers. Nikaido had a drink with me instead.”

“I’m so glad you weren’t lonely without us. Do you want to talk to Ryuu?”

“Yeah, I think his phone is dead, went straight to voicemail.”

“Then I will hand it to him.”

Ryuu took the phone. “Hi, Gaku.”

On the other end, Gaku was talking in a serious tone. Tenn couldn’t make out the words, but he rolled his eyes. 

“There wouldn’t have been any flights anyway, and the sea level was normal—“

More of Gaku’s voice. Now teasing, a laugh here and there.

“N-no! I mean...”. Ryuu sounded flustered. “We can talk about it later.”

A moment later, Ryuu handing him back the phone. Tenn took it and pressed it to his ear.

“You must be really lonely to want to talk to me again.”

“No jokes, okay. You may be the youngest, but I’m pretty sure you’re the one who knows what you’re doing.”

“Ah.” He didn’t try to deny anything. Gaku was going to know sooner or later. “Yes, I do.”

Gaku didn’t tease him or scold him. Instead, his voice was sincere. “Come to me if you need help. Don’t wait until either of you are in over your head.”

Tenn was unable to think of what next to say. Fortunately Gaku was ready to go on without him.

“I’d do anything to protect the both of you, and whatever makes you happy.”

“Please stop.” Tenn groaned. “Enjoy your vacation. We’ll be home in a few days.”

“Okay.” Then his voice got all cocky and teasing again. “Don’t have too much fun out there.”

“I’m hanging up.”

“Love you too, bye~”

Tenn tossed his phone to the other side of the bed and flopped into his pillow face-first. “Gaku...”

Ryuu laughed softly and rubbed Tenn’s back. “He made it sound like he knew before we did.”

“It’s humiliating to admit that a ridiculous man like that has more experience in these matters than either of us.”

To add to this indignity, Tenn’s stomach grumbled right at that moment.

Ryuu laughed and pat him. “I guess that means it’s time for food.”

—-

The novelty of their situation was wearing thin. Tenn had never much liked power outages. It was always a concern when Riku was younger. 

The candles and dim lights had been fun for a while, but he was quite ready for some air conditioning and fresh food. Ryuu was scrambling some eggs, because the meat from yesterday had gone sour. 

The vegetables were still good, and Ryuu was adept at making almost anything taste delicious.

“If the storm dies down this evening like they said, I’ll walk to the convenient store.”

“The one we passed in the taxi? It’s at least two miles away.”

“I usually run ten miles in the morning, I’ve been slacking off. Four miles would barely make up for it.”

“Right, I forgot who I was talking to.” 

“We still have two more days before our flight back home,” Ryuu said. “So what would you like from the store?”

“Bring me something to cook for you,” Tenn said. “You can’t go on being my personal chef.”

“You don’t have to do that. I am really enjoying the chance to cook for you.” He stopped to think about it a moment longer. “Although, a homemade meal from my Techan is so tempting...”

Tenn groaned. “You really aren’t going to let up on that one, are you?”

Ryuu turned, having plated an omelette for Tenn. He walked around the island style counter and set it down. “I won’t get very many chances, so please?”

“Okay.” Tenn smirked as he began to inhale the delicious omelette. He was ravenously hungry, and Ryuu’s cooking was always the best. “But only because you asked so nicely.”

Ryuu grinned and nuzzled a kiss against the side of his head.

Tenn ate another bite of his food. Ryuu kept staring at him. He had a perpetual smile on his face, and the look in his eyes was so soft and adoring that Tenn found it difficult to look back at him without blushing.

He had spent all of his life making others happy, his family and his fans. It was what gave him the most joy. He was used to people loving him, even if they didn’t know him. But it had been many years since someone loved him like this. Ryuu seemed so content just to be near him.

“What if I make you a donabe bowl with whatever things you find at the store.”

“Oh, sounds good, I wonder if they’ll have any fresh fish left after the storm.”

“Get whatever you want, and I’ll cook it for you.”

Ryuu was unable to suppress his affection and joy into a soft smile any longer, and hugged Tenn around the shoulders, squeezing him. “I’m such a lucky guy.”

“Please, I’m trying to eat.”

“S-sorry, Tenn!” He took his hands away and stepped back a full stride.

Tenn sighed. “You don’t have to jump away like that.”

“Ah, okay.” He closed the space again. “It’s just that when I’m so close to you, I feel like I cant help holding you.”

“Once we get back, you’ll need to learn to control yourself.” Tenn’s shook his head in dismay and sighed again. “But for now, it’s fine if you want to keep it up. Just leave my arms free so that I can finish eating?”

Ryuu crept closer and slid his arms around Tenn’s waist from behind. “Is this good?”

Tenn laughed. “If you don’t get tired of standing there.”

“I won’t.”

The light and fluffy omelette was too wonderful to let go to waste. Tenn finished it all, and stood up to wash the bowl.

He returned to Ryuu and reached up to put his arms around his neck. “Now that my stomach has been filled, could we go back to bed?”

Ryuu bent down to hug Tenn around the waist, and lifted him up. “Back to sleep already?”

“I was rudely awakened by a certain someone, after all.”

Ryuu set Tenn back on his feet and took his hand. “Gaku is just worried. We should do what we can to let him know we are okay.”

“Fine, I will call him tonight after the storm passes and let him know that we are safe and sound.”

“Thank you. I know it’ll mean a lot if he hears it from you.”

“Me? But I’d say he’s more worried about you.”

“Why do you say that?”

Tenn got into the bed and pulled Ryuu down by his arm. “He’s afraid I’ll take advantage of how sweet and innocent you are.”

Ryuu laughed as Tenn began to kiss his ear and his neck, anchoring him to the bed with his weight. “My sweet Techan would never do such a thing.”

“Hmm, but Kujo Tenn might.”


End file.
